GCMHP Enhances Staff Capacity to Provide Specialized Mental Health Services to Torture Survivors Using a Survivor-Centered and Trauma-Informed Approach

As part of its ongoing efforts to improve the quality of specialized mental health and psychosocial support services for survivors of torture, GCMHP conducted a training course titled "Survivor-Centered Care, Trauma-Informed Approaches, and Ethical Considerations," under the project "Providing Mental Health Services to Survivors of Torture in the Gaza Strip," funded by DIGNITY - Danish Institute Against Torture.

The training targeted professionals providing specialized mental health services at the program’s three community centers. It aimed to enhance their knowledge and skills in applying human rights-based professional practices, adopting a survivor-centered approach, and understanding the impact of psychological trauma, in line with international standards and best practices.

The training focused specifically on the Survivor-Centered Approach, which places the survivor at the center of the support and intervention process and upholds their right to make decisions regarding their own life and treatment options, based on their needs, priorities, and circumstances. In practice, this means listening to survivors without judgment, respecting their experiences and emotions, avoiding the imposition of any interventions, and actively involving them in determining the services they receive, while remaining sensitive to individual differences and social and cultural contexts. It also addressed the importance of creating a safe and supportive environment that fosters trust and respect, protects survivors’ privacy and dignity, and avoids practices that may trigger re-traumatization or cause further psychological harm. This includes reinforcing principles of confidentiality, informed consent, the right to choice, non-discrimination, respect for autonomy, and ensuring access to services free from coercion or stigma.

The training also covered the trauma-informed approach, emphasizing the need to understand the psychological, behavioral, and social impacts of torture and to adapt communication and professional interventions accordingly, fostering a sense of safety, trust, and agency among survivors, while upholding accountability and professional ethics throughout service delivery.

This course is part of GCMHP’s commitment to investing in its staff capacity and enhancing the quality of specialized psychological interventions, to ensure safe, responsive services that place survivors’ rights, dignity, and choices at the heart of recovery and psychosocial support.